School Spirit: Apartment Edition

By Amanda Cohen on November 30, 2016

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This past Thanksgiving weekend was filled with more than just overly-full bellies, family and friends, more food than one could ever possibly eat, and lots of down time. It was actually filled with a lot of college football games!

No matter which team you root for, you have to admit that it was a pretty exciting weekend (even though I’m still devastated about Michigan’s loss to Ohio State … someone needs to hire new referees in my opinion)! However, we must live and let live and use this loss as a learning experience.

Anyways, that’s not what I am here to talk about. I am here to talk about (drum roll please) apartment decorating!

Now, all of you are probably asking yourselves how this relates to college football. Well, it relates because I am writing about a very specific type of apartment decorating … how to decorate your apartment based off of your favorite football team!

stocksnap.io

There are two approaches to decorating your apartment based off of your favorite football team:

(1) Go all out and be obnoxiously spirited, or

(2) Use slight subtleties to represent your Alma mater.

When decorating any apartment, there are several things that you must focus on: color scheme, furniture, larger-scaled decorations and trinkets.

When deciding on color scheme, you really just want two main colors and then an accent color. One of the main colors should be more neutral (black, white, cream, beige, grey, etc.) Since I go to Michigan, I will use a Michigan-themed apartment as an example. Our colors are maize and blue; since the blue is sort of a dark-navy, it can be used as the base color. Now, we don’t want any accent colors because the maize is going to pop!

Once you paint your walls in blue (and/or maize if you are feeling extra adventurous) you have to next pick out your furniture. Since maize and blue can be really assertive colors, you want to go for more neutral furniture. A blue couch is always a winner, and you can even have a maize-colored chair to show your quirky side! When deciding on bedding, go for a blue comforter with a huge Michigan throw-blanket or quilt on top.

Larger-scale decorations are the best part of designing any apartment because this is the area in which you can get really creative! I recommend purchasing either a large canvas, tapestry, or poster for the communal living space that bleeds maize and blue.

If you want to get artsy, look for a cool photo of the stadium. If you are looking for something a little more satirical, get a huge tapestry of Harbaugh’s face … the opportunities are endless! You can also get equally creative with pillows and blankets. If you want to show some of your own individual personality in the décor, go on snapfish.com and design a collage pillow or blanket that has all of your tailgating pictures on it. Get a pillow for the couch and then a blanket for your room — it will look absolutely adorable!

Next up is smaller accessories, or, as I like to call, trinkets! If you’re like me and you want your room to scream with crazy colors and fun decorations, you need to go to websites like Etsy to purchase these small décor items! Get a Harbaugh or a Jabrill Peppers bobble-head! Get University of Michigan notepads and pens so that you are constantly in the presence of maize and blue. Get Michigan glasses, plates, silverware, napkins and more.

Okay, maybe this is a bit overboard, but if you love your school and you love your apartment, you might as well combine the two and have the best of both worlds. Seriously, just get as creative as possible and design your apartment in a way that expresses who you are. Don’t be afraid to do something crazy: you want to look at your apartment and smile every time you are in it.

Honestly, it is the perfect time to start planning and purchasing décor items because Cyber Monday sales are still going on (take a moment for reaction). So, here are the list of websites you should visit in order to accomplish your perfect sports-themed apartment.

Etsy
Urban Outfitters
Wayfair
Pottery Barn
Amazon
Nordstrom
Bloomingdale’s
Neiman Marcus
The M Den
Pier 1
Bed Bath & Beyond
HomeGoods
Target
West Elm
Society6
South Moon Under
Overstock.com

There are so many more sites you can go on, especially for inspiration! I would start by checking out your local college’s school store and go from there. Also, check out websites like Pinterest, Tumblr, Wanelo, and other interior design blogs.

With that being said, good luck and happy decoration hunting! I hope that all of my readers will be able to design the school-team-themed-apartment of their dreams (especially for those of you who yell “Go Blue” every chance you get)!

Looking for an easy way to furnish your off-campus apartment? Renting furniture from CORT saves you time and money. See how easy it is to get great looking furniture without breaking the bank.

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